Alexandria’s Noah Lyles, Still World’s Fastest Man, Wins Gold in 100m at Paris Olympics
ALEXANDRIA, VA-Noah Lyles is expected to take home the gold medal in all three of his events at the Paris Olympics – the 100-meter sprint, the 200-meter sprint, and the 4x100m relay. So far, he is coming through. In the 100m final, he retained the title of Fastest Man in the World with a photo finish. The difference between gold and silver was five one-thousandths of a second. Lyles’ time for was 9.784. Jamaica’s Kishene Thompson took silver at 9.789. Lyles’ teammate Fred Kerley won bronze at 9.87.
The win comes despite facing some stiff competition. Yesterday, in the third heat for the 100m, he finished second with a time of 10.06 seconds, six seconds behind Britain’s Louie Henchliff. He admitted to the AP that he “downplayed” his opponents, saying, “I can’t do that anymore. I promise that will not happen again.”
Earlier today in the semifinal, he finished behind Jamaica’s Kishene Thompson (9.80) and Oblique Seville (9.81). His time was 9.83.
The Americans last won gold in the event two decades ago in Athens. Lyles, with much fanfare, took his lane at 3:50 pm EST. To stand on the podium, competitors had to finish under ten seconds.
After the finish, he shouted into NBC’s camera, “America, I told you I go this.” He then ran to the stands to find his family, holding his mother in a long embrace.
Lyles grew up in Alexandria, graduating from T.C. Williams High School in 2016. Since then, he has gone on to place first at the Diamond League five times, and win gold at the World Championships in 2019, 2022, and 2023. He won bronze at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The 200m heats begin tomorrow in Saint-Denis. Tune into NBC for coverage. On Thursday (Aug. 8), a watch party will be held in the auditorium of Alexandrua City High School (3330 King St.) from 1 to 3:30 pm as Lyles competes for 200m gold. RSVP HERE. The event is made possible through a partnership with the Lyles Brothers Sports Foundation.
This report has been updated.
